I’ve known Bronwyn since I was about 10, when our families were in the local choral society together. We would spend our weekends ‘helping’ to paint sets, make props and bang nails into pieces of wood and many week nights with our homework in the local town hall while our parents rehearsed their singing. So it was brilliant to do family portraits of her, her husband Phil and daughters Amelia and Freyia recently at their home in West Sussex.
When I arrived, we saw the weather closing in and immediately put on boots to walk through woods near their home across a footbridge, where the girls watched passing trains.
The cloud cover gave us very gentle light for some portraits.
Amelia was very keen not to miss any opportunity to get close to the camera, even when the photographer was, ahem, ‘hidden’ in the grass.
And she was completely delighted with a tree stump just made for her to climb and play the king of the castle … although getting down took almost as much effort as getting up.
Freyia was completely chilled throughout our session, enjoying her scenic perch in the arms of either Bronwyn or Phil.
Autumn leaves – something the family is going to miss when it returns to Australia next year.
The edge of the woods had a perfect seat for a formal family portrait.
In another woodland gap, Amelia found a log to use as a horse.
Then home while Bronwyn whipped up a lemon delicious pudding (a recipe we both have and use from our school home economics classes) and Amelia and Phil entertained the rest of the household – i.e. me, with a rock chick version of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
Before the chefs came for more music. 